Approval process for significant changes

The purpose of the Significant Changes planning meeting is to ensure a plan is in place to make changes that will enhance the programme, and that there is an approval process that is appropriately robust and proportionate. By the end of the planning meeting there should be a strategy for making changes, and a School based approval process agreed.  The planning meeting will follow a standard agenda, but this can be adapted as needed.

The Programme Leader will complete a rationale statement and summary of the planned changes and submit it to the clerk at least one week before the Significant Changes planning meeting. The rationale statement explains why the approval is being sought at this time and outlines the amendments and enhancements the programme team wish to make. When writing the rationale statement and summary of changes, the following should be considered:

• Any recommendations following any ADC proposals or decisions; for example, approval in principle for any new award or amended award titles.
• Any relevant outcomes of a Portfolio Review
• Any PSRB requirements (including apprenticeships)
• Tableau data supporting any identified risks or other issues: for example, admissions data, progression, continuation data, attainment data, module failure rates.
• Risks from the last NSS/PTES data with themes and questions falling below UH thresholds.
• Subject specific issues and trends identified
• If module learning outcomes are changed, how the Herts Learning Principles and Graduate Attributes continue to be met.

The Significant Changes planning meeting is arranged by academic services and is usually online.  Membership for the meeting is flexible according to the requirements of the School, but the Associate Dean for Education and Student Success or their nominee should Chair the meeting and the Associate Director for Academic Quality linked to the School, Programme Leader and Clerk should attend. There is a standard agenda to guide the meeting, but it can be amended to suit the level and complexity of the programme changes. There are key areas that should be discussed and relevant decisions made for a plan to be agreed. They include:

• Development team membership
• Whether the development team would like a Curriculum Development Workshop
• The timing of the Curriculum Development Workshop and who will be the facilitator if requested.
• How the activities of any enhancements or amendments will be captured and communicated amongst the development team.
• The process for informing, consulting and gaining consent where necessary of applicants, offer holders and current students to be CMA compliant.
• The membership of the School based approval panel that will review the Significant Changes and be responsible for approval. This must include the Associate Director for Academic Quality and the Associate Dean for Education and Student Success or their nominee.
• A timeline including a deadline for submission of documents and the School based approval panel meeting.
• Other requirements such as those stipulated by PSRBs or other external drivers
• Confirmation of the documents that should be submitted to the School based approval panel and agreement of any additional documents required.
• If there are any changes of additions to award titles, ADC’s approval should be evidenced.

The optional Curriculum Development Workshop is a chance for teams to explore their practice, any key challenges and the impact of their proposed changes. A facilitator from the Education Team in the Centre for Education and Student Success (CEdSS) will work with the programme leader to identify the focus of the session. It is a space to clarify ideas and voice reservations, where colleagues are encouraged to be realistic, ambitious and imaginative in connecting with UH principles of effective and inclusive curriculum design. The facilitator will be able to articulate strategic university goals and help teams navigate the practical challenge of implementing these.

Each development team will make changes and enhancements to aspects of the programme as required. The development team should consult stakeholders and seek advice as appropriate. The Programme Leader is responsible for ensuring all those involved understand their roles and responsibilities and that changes and enhancements are proportionate and within the boundaries of Significant Change. They are responsible for ensuring the submission document is clear, the production of programme documents is consistent with the University’s regulations and that the programme is ready for consideration by the agreed deadlines. All changes should be discussed and agreed with the Programme Committee and there should be appropriate applicant, offer holder and student consultation and consent to be CMA compliant.

The documents required will depend on the changes and developments made. For a School based approval, there should be clear indication of where any changes have been made, for example by highlighting them on key documents such as Programme Specifications, DMDs and Course Fact Sheets. All comments and highlights indicating changes should be removed before the final documents are recommended for approval. The following documents should be produced for review.

• The rationale statement and summary that was discussed at the planning meeting. This includes the reason why the changes are taking place and outlines the changes. Additions can be made to the to the rationale statement and summary to explain if there were deviations from the original plan and what the final changes are.
• Programme Specification
• Any DMDs that have been changed or amended
• Assessment landscape
• Completed PSRB and apprenticeship mapping tools (if required)
• Proof of UPR exemptions (if required)
• Course Fact Sheet.
• Evidence of appropriate consultation and consent by applicants, offer holders and students that demonstrate CMA compliance.
• Where appropriate consideration of how stakeholder feedback has informed the development; for example: external expert consultation and employers.

The documents should be submitted to the nominated Academic Services officer who acts as the clerk normally four weeks prior to the agreed deadline.

A School based approval is flexible and in proportion to the level of changes made to a programme. The details of the approval process should be discussed and decided at the planning meeting. Typically, a School based approval involves the submission of documentation by the development team for review by a School based approval panel. The panel review the documentation to check the programme changes are fit for purpose and that the programme documentation is correct and of a publishable standard. The panel decide whether approval can be given or whether further work is needed to meet the University’s standard requirements.

A School based approval panel is made up of an Associate Director Academic Quality and the Associate Dean for Education and Student Success (or their nominee) plus any other person the School thinks relevant. For example, in some instances an employer may be included or if the development has focussed on improving student experience it may be appropriate to have a student panel member.

School based approval is flexible and can be adapted at the request of Associate Dean for Education and Student Success (or their nominee). Normally, after reviewing the documentation, the School based approval panel will have a meeting to discuss their findings. No written feedback is given to the development team, instead, a meeting is held with the Programme Leader and any other relevant members of the programme team to recognise good practice, clarify any issues and discuss any concerns. The standard agenda for this meeting can be adapted as needed.  A clerk records the key themes discussed in the meeting including commendations and any conditions that must be met before approval can be recommended.  If there are conditions the clerk will record them in the notes along with an agreed timeline for when they should be submitted before a follow up meeting to ensure all requirements are met. This record is distributed to the panel and development team.

If the School based approval panel require further actions from the development team they should be submitted and checked before final approval. All final programme documentation should be uploaded to the Curriculum Management System and checked and approved by the Associate Dean for Education and Student Success (or nominee).